Advocacy Alert for Safety Cameras: AB 342

“A car is like a weapon,” according to Elizabeth Chavez, the mother of five-year old Aileen Quiroz who was struck and killed by one of those two-ton projectiles as AileenQ held her Aunt Elena’s hand while walking in a crosswalk in front of a school.

Aileen’s death was no accident. This crash could’ve been prevented — and, as in countless other cases, there is one pervasive and insidious culprit: speed.

It doesn’t have to be this way.

There are proven solutions to help calm traffic speeds and reduce the tragic crashes that result in life-changing or life-ending injuries. That’s why Walk San Francisco and the Vision Zero Coalition are calling on elected leaders in the California Assembly and Senate to prioritize people’s safety over speed.

There is one tool in particular that can drastically change the culture of speeding and is proven to save lives. It’s easy to implement and one of the quickest, most effective ways to reduce the carnage on dangerous streets.

The tool is Automated Speed Enforcement (ASE), also known as safety cameras, which is currently illegal in the State of California, but has reduced traffic deaths by 70% in Washington, D.C. In Seattle, safety cameras have been so effective in slowing traffic, tickets for speeding violations have dropped 64%.

Sadly, for too long, politics have gotten in the way.

On Wednesday, February 8, Assemblymember David Chiu (SF) stood up for safety! He introduced Assembly Bill 342 – The Safe Streets Act of 2017, with co-sponsors Assemblymember Kansen Chu (San Jose), and Senators Jim Beall (San Jose) and Scott Wiener (SF). AB 342 will save lives in San Francisco in San Jose, by supporting data-driven solutions.

Stand with Walk SF, the Vision Zero Coalition, the members of the SanFrancisco Bay Area Families for Safe Streets and everyone affected by traffic violence, to call on the State of California to make smart policy choices to prevent future daughters, fathers, brothers, and friends from being killed or seriously injured by dangerous speeds – sign this petition to support AB 342.

As a recent report shows, one of the most effective, quick and easy to implement solutions is Automated Speed Enforcement (ASE). A small fee similar to a parking ticket ($50 or $75) is enough to slow drivers who are exceeding the speed limit.

Cities with speed cameras report they reduce overall speeds, the percentage of speeding vehicles and, over time, even the number of speeding tickets issued and most importantly, the number of lives lost.

Sign the petition to show you support for AB 342 and the single most effective tool available to save lives: Automated Speed Enforcement (ASE) safety cameras.

Let state legislators know you want them to change California’s law, which currently makes it illegal for San Francisco and San Jose to use safety cameras to save lives like AileenQ’s.

Automated Safety Enforcement Save Lives: Support AB 342 to Make Safety Cameras Legal in S.F. and San Jose